`Laid-back' Park Full Of Color

OUT AND ABOUT: RAINBOW SPRINGS

The Sparkling Waters Of The State Park Are An Open Invitation To Swimmers And Boaters.

June 21, 2004|By Sonia Chopra, Special to the Sentinel

If you've done the annual pilgrimage to the theme parks and the beaches and the kids are still clamoring for more outdoor fun, here's another suggestion: Rainbow Springs State Park.

The park three miles north of Dunnellon in Marion County has American Indian historic sites. Its activities include camping, swimming, trails for walking and beautiful garden areas for picnics.

"If you want to reconnect with nature, this is the perfect place. It's laid-back and it's a cultural and natural resource, and the gardens are quite an attraction," said Charlene Johnson, park services specialist.

"It was called Blue Springs, like many other in Florida, until one day one of the owners' wives noticed how the sun shining on the water turned the water into rainbow colors and from then on, it was called Rainbow Springs."

Designated a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Rainbow River -- once known as Blue Run -- is approximately 5.9 miles long and runs into the Withlacoochee River, through Lake Rousseau and then into the Gulf of Mexico. Only a portion of the river falls within the park, where it supports a wide variety of fish and wildlife.

Johnson said the opal-like waters, framed by tall trees from the hillside walkways, are perhaps Florida's most beautiful and breathtaking springs.

Four outlets in the headsprings area, along with several other outlets, contribute approximately 52 percent of the total discharge of the Rainbow River.

Rainbow Springs was developed in the early 1930s as a tourist attraction with sea walls, a lodge, a gift shop, the waterfalls and a reptile exhibit. It was during this period that the name was changed to distinguish it from the other Blue Springs in the area.

Perhaps its busiest period was in the 1960s, when it had glass-bottomed boats, riverboat rides, a log raft ride, a leaf-shaped gondola system and a cafe. Then I-75 was built and a new attraction called Walt Disney World came to Central Florida. The Rainbow Springs Attraction closed in 1974.

The state bought the original area that was the Rainbow Springs Attraction in 1990. Volunteers cleared the overgrown park and opened the park on weekends to the public in 1993. The Florida Park Service officially opened Rainbow Springs State Park full time on March 9, 1995.

A band of 30 volunteers had cleaned the park of more than 15 years of debris. When the volunteers grew to more than 250, they formed The Friends of Rainbow Springs State Park. The volunteers contribute about 15,000 hours annually and raise cash to add more amenities.

Among activities today, the park offers pavilion rentals, tubing (only for campers), boating and canoeing. Fishing is prohibited within the entire headsprings area. Signs mark the no-fishing zone. The rest of the river is open for fishing.

Like most freshwater springs in Florida, the water at Rainbow Springs averages 72 degrees year-round. Alligator sightings are rare. But since it is Florida, keep in mind that any body of water might contain an alligator.

The Rainbow River was designated as a Registered Natural Landmark in 1972, an Aquatic Preserve in 1986 and an "Outstanding Florida Waterway" in 1987.